News : Derecho sends Grain Bin into Benton County Deputy on Duty

Deputy Sheriff Jeff Harnish survives encounter with grain bin

For Deputy Sheriff and officer with Belle Plaine Jeff Harnish, it was just another day at work. Except on this day, August 10th. It won't be one he will be forgetting. He had just finished a stop on Highway 30 when he noticed the wind was picking up. He searched for a place to find some shelter. Pulling in across the road from a stand of trees which also sheltered a pig barn and silo, he saw a straight truck had also pulled over to escape the wind as well. He too thought that the location looked like the perfect spot to get out of the wind.

In another part of the county, Deputy Mark Johnson had just finished a call in Atkins. He had tried to reach the Benton County Sheriff's Office but was unable to get through. He found out that calls from Tama County had been rolling over into the Benton County 911 center because the volume of calls for help in Tama County had overwhelmed the system there. Dispatch let him know that we were about to be hit by a storm that was going to be ugly. He found a spot to park and wait out the storm at a corner south of Van Horne and Newhall and parked along Highway 218. He said he chose a spot with no trees and no high lines figuring that he would be alright.

Meanwhile, at the station, dispatchers felt helpless as calls had begun pouring into the switchboard. Inundated with calls from Tama County, because the storm had hit there first, the 911 center began answering calls long before the storm arrived in Benton County.

Veteran dispatchers Dorothy Wild, who has served 35 years and Kyla Upah who has been answering calls for 25 years say that they've never seen anything like it. "There's nothing more heartbreaking than having people call 911 praying and begging you for help, begging for you not to hang up and to just talk to them...and having to make that decision to stay on the line with them or to hang up, hoping that they will be okay, because you and your partner can't answer all of the calls coming in," said Upah.

In the meantime, in Atkins, a report was received of winds reaching 90 miles an hour or more in Blairstown and Keystone. Sheriff's Deputy Blake Henkle began notifying anyone outside at the time that there was a storm headed their way and residents should take cover. Henkle remained in his squad car until it was impossible to continue to be out.

Seeking a safe place to ride out the storm, he sought refuge in the Atkins Fire Station hoping that it would be a safe place during the storm. At the time there were two other individuals inside. The group stayed at the east end of the building watching out the window as the storm increased in power.

Back on Highway 30, Deputy Harnish saw the grain bin across the road begin to move. As most of us know now, that was probably one of the worst places to be. The grain bin came loose and Harnish attempted to back out of its path. It, however, landed on the squad car that Harnish was sitting in. Smashing the top of the car down on the side where Harnish was sitting and injuring Harnish.

South of Van Horne and Newhall, Deputy Johnson sat in his car for nearly half an hour as the storm roared around him. At one point he was thinking he might get picked up by a tornado, but his car suffered minor damage, and fortunately, when flying debris hit his windshield it cracked it, but it held. Several small pieces of debris left cracks all across his windshield but still, it remained in place unshattered. As soon as the storm passed, Johnson headed into Van Horne to assist the Fire Department on calls and began to respond to calls from there.

Back in the Atkins Fire Station the three inside the building watched as the flagpole outside the station began shaking and then disappear. The ceiling in the apparatus bay began to move up and down, and the three thought that perhaps the roof had blown off.

Meanwhile, under the grain bin, Harnish still alert and in his car, made a call for help. Amazingly he was able to accurately give his location following the accident. However, the ambulance was unable to respond right away as the winds were still too high for the ambulance to make it through the storm, but as soon as the winds died down to 60-70 mph the EMTs made their way down Highway 30 to Harnish.

As the two arrived, Lani Mumby saw the semi that was also tipped over and hurried to help the driver out and into the Ambulance while Mindi Icenbice went to Harnish. Mumby rushed over to block the wind and debris from hitting the deputy through the broken window of the squad car. The two EMTs finally managed to pull Harnish free through the passenger side door around all of the radio and computer equipment in the front of the car.

Back in the fire station, the ceiling collapsed down on the top of the fire trucks inside the fire station. Sheriff's Deputy Blake Henkle and the two others inside survived the storm uninjured. Fortunately for Henkle, his squad car was undamaged, but the car next to it didn't fair as well. Immediately Henkle began to patrol the streets seeking for people that were in immediate danger. Making sure those in town were alright, he began checking on those in the rural areas.

All of the Benton County Deputies were immediately called out to check on each of the towns in the county assisting as they could. Henkle made his way to Highway 30 and closed it for a time due to the downed powerlines. He then began to check on stranded motorists and began working his way back toward Vinton.

Harnish said following his encounter with the grain bin that he was told he was a bit "silly" from the hit, due to shock from his injury when the ambulance crew arrived. Harnish also suffered several cuts on his arm from the glass and debris and received treatment at the hospital.

The sheriff's department only lost one car and had minor repairs on the other. Not one Benton County deputy was lost, and even though some were traumatized by their experiences, they all continued to serve as soon as the storm passed and as they were needed.

In Atkins, the Fire Department reported that the fire station was destroyed in the storm. With the help of two cranes and numerous volunteers, the department was able to lift the roof up long enough to get the fire trucks out and the truck damage was minor and all trucks are usable.

The Department is looking for a solution for the trucks and is able to respond to all calls. The department said in their Facebook post. They went on to say, "Our house is not defined by the structure around us, but rather by the courage and determination of those who serve in it."

That sums up those that serve in Benton County. It's not the structures, it's the people. A heartfelt thank you to all of our public servants.

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